The day you broke our website & what it revealed

Late on the evening of October 17, you broke our website. It was quite possibly an Emily’s Voice statistical record when upwards of 63,000 people were reached by a single news article and many of those were directed to our website in the equivalent of a social media stampede.

You were hungry for information. You were angry, confused, hurt, grieved. You wanted to share the news.

And while our website caved under the pressure of so many people seeking information, we want you to know that we never will. In fact, aside from the technical issues we scrambled to navigate that day, we were actually kind of chuffed that this happened.

Yes, we were chuffed that our website crashed. Why?

Because it confirmed what we already suspected. You care a lot about the unborn and their mums. This topic is especially close to your heart. You think about it before you drift off to sleep at night. You mull it over as you sip your tea. You talk about it with your husband, wife, mum, dad, brother, sister, friends. You feel physically sick when you read news articles endorsing body autonomy and women’s rights while completely omitting the voice of certain innocents within the womb.

You care deeply.

And we hear you.

Just as we’ve tidied up the problem with our website, perhaps you’ve tidied up your emotional response to the devastating result of that Queensland vote three weeks ago. The dust has settled. You’re not okay with it. But you’ve done the only thing you can do. Accept it. Accept that the law enshrines something that hacks against the grain of what you know to be good and right and true. And you’ve moved onwards. Because what else can we do?

Yet, there is much we can do.

In fact, the experience of a passionate pursuit of truth and justice like in Queensland – and in Tasmania and Victoria and South Australia and the ACT and the Northern Territory and, in time, New South Wales, brings us together in unity. This is something wonderfully positive that comes of these tangled moments in history. We are reminded that we are many, and we have great power.

It doesn’t matter what the law says. Did I just write that? There is a Bible verse that reads: “Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial” (1 Corinthians 10:23). If we can show, in truth and with love, that there is a better way, people will be drawn in. Moths to the light, sheep to lush pasture. This is culture change, and where the heart of Emily’s Voice resides.

Love is greater than the law.

Will you rise up with the same zest and fervour as you demonstrated during the Queensland abortion debate and show a love that overrides Australia’s laws – laws that fail to acknowledge the reality of life within the womb, not to mention the vulnerability of women faced with unplanned pregnancy? We need people with the same level of energy and passion to be walking-talking-loving pregnancy centres to the people in their midst.

Don’t freak out!

We’re not asking you to literally start your own pregnancy support centre. We just want you to be part of a tribe that is well-resourced to help every woman faced with an unplanned pregnancy. We don’t know what the future holds. It could be your daughter, your colleague, your friend. It could even be yourself.

It’s estimated that as much as 50 per cent of pregnancies are unplanned. Hey, it’s a part of life! Imagine an army of support that wraps around people at these uncertain seasons of life, enabling and empowering them to embrace an alternative future and enjoy the abundant rewards.

But how?

We’re not asking for a lung. All we’re asking for is an email address. But this is NOT just another email list either. It’s so much bigger than that. Joining the Movement for Life will equip you, encourage you and bring opportunities in these ways:

You’ll be part of something HUGE. The Movement for Life is bigger than the sum of its parts. When we join together and make a (loving) noise, the rumble will resound so much stronger.

Stay in the know. You are an effective voice for life when you are up to date with what’s happening. Political and medical advancements, real life stories, statistics and victories. We provide these to you in easy-to-understand formats so you can learn on the run, and share amongst your own networks.

Do do do! We give you opportunities to be practical in your support of life. We invite you to attend events, to donate to our culture-change campaigns, to have conversations with your friends. We empower you to be part of meaningful change.

The day our website broke told us something incredibly important.
You love life. You are passionate. You care.